South Carolina loses Lattimore to horrific injury

Published: Saturday, October 27, 2012 at 10:48 PM.

Fellow receiver Bruce Ellington said that after the injury, he remembered what Lattimore had said the night before and wanted to make sure to give it his all for the remainder of the game.

“After I saw that he got hurt, I thought to myself if I get hurt, just play every play like it’s your last,” Ellington said. “He told us that yesterday in the meeting, to just play every play like it’s our last. After I saw that I wanted to make sure to give 100 percent in everything that I did.”

While the extent of the injury is yet to be determined, Coach Steve Spurrier painted an ominous picture in his news conference after the Gamecocks finished off their 38-35 victory.

“Obviously Marcus has a severe knee injury. We’ll let the doctors tell you exactly what all it is later on,” Spurrier said. “He’s such a good young man. Good things are going to happen for Marcus. I don’t know exactly where or how, but good things are going to happen for Marcus Lattimore.”

After the game, USC released a statement saying that Lattimore is out indefinitely with a right knee injury and will be evaluated later this week.

Lattimore stayed on the ground after Gordon’s hit and South Carolina’s trainers rushed onto the field. The crowd, loud and boisterous just moments earlier, fell silent.

Several Tennessee players came over to check on Lattimore. One was backup defensive end Corey Miller, a teammate of Lattimore’s at Byrnes.

COLUMBIA, S.C. – Marcus Lattimore’s words, soaked with emotion and meant to inspire a team coming off two straight losses, are now drenched in sorrow, agony and bitter, bitter irony.

South Carolina’s star running back spoke as a team captain Friday night after the team returned from the movies and stressed the importance of playing hard every play, because you never know which play could be your last.

Saturday against Tennessee, he played what is most likely the last snap of his junior season and possibly his career at South Carolina.

Lattimore suffered a horrific right knee injury when he was hit by Tennessee defensive back Eric Gordon on a run during the second quarter of Saturday’s game. He was carted off the field and taken to a nearby hospital for evaluation.

“When we got back from the movies last night, he got up there and said something to the team like, ‘I want to let y’all know to give it your all out there and not take this for granted, act like every play is your last play,’” Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney said. “Nobody expected something like that to happen to him again after it just happened last year.”

South Carolina receiver Ace Sanders said Lattimore’s speech was still etched in his memory as he spoke to the media after Saturday’s game.

“That was the first thing that came out of Marcus’ mouth. I want everybody to play hard, and play every snap like it’s your last because you never know, it could be your last. He just went out there and he gave us everything. That might’ve been his last snap,” Sanders said.

Fellow receiver Bruce Ellington said that after the injury, he remembered what Lattimore had said the night before and wanted to make sure to give it his all for the remainder of the game.

“After I saw that he got hurt, I thought to myself if I get hurt, just play every play like it’s your last,” Ellington said. “He told us that yesterday in the meeting, to just play every play like it’s our last. After I saw that I wanted to make sure to give 100 percent in everything that I did.”

While the extent of the injury is yet to be determined, Coach Steve Spurrier painted an ominous picture in his news conference after the Gamecocks finished off their 38-35 victory.

“Obviously Marcus has a severe knee injury. We’ll let the doctors tell you exactly what all it is later on,” Spurrier said. “He’s such a good young man. Good things are going to happen for Marcus. I don’t know exactly where or how, but good things are going to happen for Marcus Lattimore.”

After the game, USC released a statement saying that Lattimore is out indefinitely with a right knee injury and will be evaluated later this week.

Lattimore stayed on the ground after Gordon’s hit and South Carolina’s trainers rushed onto the field. The crowd, loud and boisterous just moments earlier, fell silent.

Several Tennessee players came over to check on Lattimore. One was backup defensive end Corey Miller, a teammate of Lattimore’s at Byrnes.

Tennessee’s media relations staff refused to make Miller available to comment on his former teammate after the game.

Spurrier said he had never seen a similar scene after an injury.

“Everybody in the SEC and around the country has the utmost respect for Marcus Lattimore, mainly as a person,” Spurrier said. “We all know he’s a great guy. As a person, there’s no greater than him that I’ve ever met. It was touching. The Tennessee guys felt bad about it too.”

Tennessee coach Derek Dooley said people respect Lattimore and what he has accomplished.

“Nobody likes to see a player get hurt. So I think when (my players) saw the severity of it and went out there, it just shows the respect that everybody has for each other as athletes.”

Sanders said that he thinks the show of support by USC and Tennessee players was uplifting for Lattimore.

“I don’t think people actually realized how much respect everyone has for Marcus Lattimore. Not only is he a good football player, but he’s a good person,” Sanders said. “It was a big blow to everybody to see him down, but once everybody came together I think it helped him, spirit wise, to just know that there are that many people out there that really care about him sincerely. I think it helped him almost more than it helped us as a team.”

As medical personnel prepared to load Lattimore onto a cart, the entire South Carolina team gathered around their fallen star and the crowd chanted his name.

Carolina players tried to offer encouraging words, but said it was tough to know what to say.

“Really, everybody was saying stuff like keep your head up,” Clowney said. “Some people didn’t want to look at it.”

USC defensive back Victor Hampton said he was at a loss for words.

“It was hard to say anything, really. It was hard to know what to say to him just because you know how hard he worked. It’s just really hard to see.”

Sanders said it was tough seeing the pain on Lattimore’s face, adding that he felt the life come out of the stadium when Lattimore was carted off the field.

“I was really just trying to tell him to stay mentally strong. I just saw the look in the eyes when he was on the ground and he was really heartbroken about his injury,” Sanders said. In addition to the show of support on the field, current and former athletes took to social media sites to send well wishes to Lattimore.

Dallas Cowboys running back DeMarco Murray, Carolina Panthers linebacker Thomas Davis, Auburn running back Tre Mason and LSU defensive lineman Sam Montgomery were among many athletes offering prayers and support for Lattimore on Twitter, who was the top trending topic worldwide on the site from the time of his injury until the third quarter of the game.

In addition, Clemson receiver Sammy Watkins took to Facebook to express his support for Lattimore. Also on Facebook, two “Pray for Marcus Lattimore” pages had nearly 50,000 likes as of early Saturday evening after being created only five hours earlier.

Carolina tight end Justice Cunningham, who finished the game with six catches for 108 yards, said the Gamecocks wanted to make sure to win the game and try to give Lattimore a reason to smile.

“We knew we had to play this one for Marcus. We didn’t want him to get hurt and lose the game. We wanted to do something to make him happy because I know he’s going through a lot right now,” he said.

Spurrier added that he was proud of the way the team responded after the injury and won the game for Lattimore.

“I think all of our players understand that no matter what happens you have to move on. You can’t sit around and mope. At halftime, I said the best thing we can do is win the ballgame and give the game ball to Marcus, which we did,” he said.

Lattimore’s mother, Yolanda Smith, joined her son in the locker room. Vernon Smith, Lattimore’s stepfather, did not immediately respond to a text seeking comment.

Lattimore, who had been slowed with a hip injury in losses to LSU and Florida the past two weeks, appeared poised to have a huge day against the Volunteers. He had already rushed for 65 yards, including a 28-yard touchdown run, when he was injured.

“He had a heck of a game going, too,” Spurrier said. “A guy came knifing in there. The other guy hit him low. It is a very, very unfortunate thing that happened to Marcus.”

Last season, Lattimore missed the final six games after tearing ligaments in his left knee against Mississippi State. He needed surgery and about six months of rehab before he was cleared to return to practice.

He arrived at USC in 2010 as a much-hyped freshman, and he lived up to the hype. Lattimore ran for 1,149 yards and 17 touchdowns in his first season. He is South Carolina’s career leader in total touchdowns (41) and rushing touchdowns (38).

Byrnes offensive coordinator Bobby Bentley said in a text message that “the entire Rebel family is praying” for Lattimore.

“He is the epitome of what we represent,” Bentley said. “We expect him to be back better than ever. God bless Marcus and his family.”

USC quarterback Connor Shaw said that he has faith that Lattimore, who will turn 21 on Monday, will overcome this injury.

“If there’s anybody that can handle it mentally, it’s Marcus. He’s such a leader on and off the field. People look up to him. He’s one of those guys that rallies the troops,” Shaw said.